Insufficient sleep causes annual economic loss of up to $411B in U.S.

A new analysis by RAND Europe calculated the cost of insufficient sleep in the U.S., Canada, U.K., Germany and Japan.

The report, Why sleep matters: the economic costs of insufficient sleep, estimates that the U.S. loses an equivalent of about 1.23 million working days on an annual basis due to insufficient sleep. Economic predictions indicate that in absolute terms, widespread insufficient sleep causes the U.S. to sustain an annual economic loss of up to $411 billion. This loss is projected to increase to up to $433 billion in 2020 and up to $456 billion in 2030.

The report recommends that the promotion of healthy sleep should be prioritized by individuals, employers, and public authorities. Two of the report’s co-authors, including AASM member Wendy Troxel, PhD, also posted a companion article on the Washington Post website, emphasizing that, “if Americans who sleep less than six hours a night increase their nightly sleep to between six and seven hours a night, this could add $226.4 billion to the U.S. economy.”